Golf putter



April 29 1930. w c sP|KER 157 56219 GOLE PUTTER Filed May 31, 1928 v I gVVEA/i 9R. I BY A T TORNE Y.

its stri 'ng face will be 7 vergent. 'This more Patented Apr. 29, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM a snrknn, OF'ATLANTAGEORGIA corn ru'rrrm Application filed May 31,

The present invention relates to golf clubs of the putter type and "consists in the combinations and arrangements of elements hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the accompan ing-claim. p

' the invention is to provide that will materially assist the player in his game and particularly aid I in directing the ball to the desired goal. In 1 other words it is proposed to designa putter which will facilitate finding the correct position of the club-with relation to the ball at the moment of striking, and to insure the holdin 'of the club in such a manner that perpendicular to the intended trajectory of the ball. With putters and approach clubs now in 'use ordinarily all but the striking surface thereof is curved and The purpose 0 a club or putter or less distracts the player in addressing the ball as he has only the lower edge of he club from which-to judge the angular position with regard to the intended path 0- the ball. Also from a scientific point of view and as has been proved practically the striking face of a putter should be'vertical or lean slightly forward. With no loft on a putter or with the striking face tilted forward the lower edge of the putter is out of sight of-the player so that the one guide line he now has is obscured from view.

' To overcome these posed to design a putter essentially like any other putter but characterized in having all its edges, visible to the player, disposed parallel with any horizontal line in the putting face of the putter or parallel to a tangent to the face and/or the lower edge in case one 49 or the other or both are curved, and in like manner parallel with the: putting green thereby assisting the player in holding the club head normal to'the line of propose travel of the golf ball; and to the end of accentuating the importance of this detail in any game scientifically played it is fproposed to have'the top or visible ortion o the club v of rectan ular outline an its surface preferably maried with grooves or stripes of distinguishing colors. f

, on the the corner angles d1- straight-line -design,hence the name stralght disadvantages, it is pro (1 entire length manner the sharp edges of said groove and ussuru In addition to the aforesaid characteristics the club possesses other features of essential novelty that will be apparent from the following detailed description.

The invention is shown by way of illustration in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

1928. Serial No. 281,884.

Figure 1 1s a perspective view of the club.

Figure 2 a similar view on a larger scale with the handle partly broken away. Figure 3 an elevational view of Figure 2 seen from the heel end.

Figure 4 a transverse sectional view taken line 4-4 of Figure- 2, and;

Figure 5 a'front elevational' view showing the putting surface.

Referring to the construction in further detail the numeral 10 shaft secured in any suitable manner to the club or putter head 11, and at the usual or best angle thereto for obtaining the correct loft of its striking or putting face 12. The club head in its entirety is not necessarily longer than ordinary putters but as already indicated is characterized. by its parallel utter is an appropriate designation there- In transverse cross-section (Figure 4) the putterhead is not unlike an inverted triangle, i. e. with one side uppermost, and 'havlng the striking or putting-surfaces 12 thereof disposed su stantially at right angles to the top or upper surface 14 which is essen-- tially'rectangular in outline as shown in Figure 1. The surface 13 is disposed approximately at an acute angle with the putting surface 12, and the lower portion 20 is straight medially of the head but appreciably curved at the ends thereof.

The top surface 14 is preferably formed with a longitudinal groove 16 running the of the head and forming two similar'ledges 15 and 17, whose upper surfaces are bevelled and oppositely disposed as shown in Figure 4. 'The longitudinally running edges of the bevelled portions 15 and 17 are disposed in true parallelism with the putting face-12 of the club, and in like designates the handle section the center of such marking.

the ledges run parallel with the putting surface 12. With this arrangement it will be apparent that at whatever angle the light rays strike the top surface 14 of the -l1ead at least one of its rectangular sections will be clearly visible to the golfer. In order to still further emphasize this parallelism and its visibility it is proposed to paint the upper surfaces of said groove and ledges (i. e. sections 15, 16 and 17) in different contrasting colors thus making them stand out still better from each other and from the ground or putting green.

The putting face 12 may have thereon any marking desired or may be entirely free of However,- for the purpose of securing a surface orface best adapted for taking hold of the ball and for the further purpose of carrying out the essential feature of parallel lines and conspicuous corners, as above explained, it is proposed to have said putting face provided with a multiplicity of parallel grooves forming ridges all -.ly1ngiin substantially the same plane and paral el with the edges and marked faces on the top 14. of the putter as shown.

The head'is preferably made from metal or a combination of materials having different specific gravities in order to obtain or to assist in obtaining the proper balancing thereof, because on account of its uniform crossgravity would naturally fall nearer the heelend than is usual. To

thereto, a longitudinal groove formed medially in said top surface and extending the entire length thereof, said groove 'provlding similar fields to either side and said fields being oppositely bevelled, the bottom surface of the groove and said bevelled surfaces having their side edges all lying in parallel relation and adapted to have contrasting colors whereby one field of the top surface will be visible at whatever angle the light rays strike said top surface, for the purpose set forth. In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia, this 23" day of May, A. D. nineteen hundred and twenty-eight.

I WILLIAM C. SPIKER.

compensate for this there are provided staggered rows of recesses or holes 19 bored or otherwise formed in the club from the rear surface 13 thereof as shown in Figure 4. By this means not only the proper balance but also the proper wei ht of the head may be obtained without ailicting the essential parallelism of the lines which the operator of the putter can see in the act of playing. As different operators require certain weights and balances for their clubs some of these holes may be plugged with lead or other heavy material as indicated at 18, and since these holes are bored in the club from the rear or concealed surface 13, which appreciably slants away from the top or gauging surface 14.,said holes or plugs are not visible to the golfer during action and cannot there'- fore distract him from his play. Any variation in the balance can, of course, be easily 1riaaide by selectively plugging up the proper 0 es. It is to be understood that the invention as herein disclosed is not limited to the details of construction shown and described as' these may be varied without departin from the spirit of the invention as defined y the claim.

What is claimed as new is:

A head for a golf club having a top surfageliif substantially rectangular outline and a a striking face disposed at a right angle 

